


A Simple Choice Can Make The Biggest Difference

by CaseyJuTardis



Category: Walking Dead, Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Other, This is my first fic on here omg ;-;, i really don't like love triangles?????, my view in life is that if you love more than one person, so yeah this happened, so yeah ~tada!~, talk about it and see what happens, these tags are long sorry I tend to ramble
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-12
Updated: 2013-08-17
Packaged: 2017-12-23 06:14:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/922967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaseyJuTardis/pseuds/CaseyJuTardis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rick makes a very, very simple choice. It's too hot in Atlanta. So, they pack up camp, and head north to Pennsylvania. </p>
<p>What they find... Well. It gives them hope for humanity all over again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introductions

**Author's Note:**

> Omg someone actually clicked on my story. Thank you friend.   
> Ok, so, yeah, this will end up in a polyamorous relationship. Because I don't like love triangles. I think they're stupid.   
> And also, her name. I stink at coming up with names, and I really like the name Winchester, so she has no relation to the brothers Sam and Dean from Supernatural.

Rick was tired. More than usual. He wasn't quite sure how they ended up in- he glanced at the sign they were passing- southeastern Pennsylvania. Rick had an idea though, something about it getting too hot in Atlanta, so the group decided to move a little farther north. He could already feel the difference. The breeze wafting in from the car window was cooler, fresher than the hot Georgia air. 

So, they were just driving in their usual caravan, Amy, Andrea, Glenn, and Dale all in the RV, T-Dog in the truck, Shane in the Jeep, Rick, Carl, Lori, Carol, and Sophia all in the car, with Daryl cruising along next to them on his brother's bike. The woods were starting to grow thicker, the grass too. They passed the occasional abandoned car, but it wasn't too crowded. 

Eventually, because God forbid they ever get any long-lasting luck, they ran into an overturned truck that spanned the width of the highway. Rick sighed as he got out and walked up to the RV. 

Rick was about to ask for suggestions from the group, when a quiet hissing sound whisked by his face, and landed in the truck's tire with a soft thunk. They all dropped into crouches, and shuffled into their usual positions, kids and unarmed in the middle, armed surrounding them. 

"What the hell-" Lori started, but was interrupted with another whizz-thunk sound. Rick looked at the tire, and saw that they were... Arrows? He glanced over at Daryl, who shrugged. 

"Not mine. Different feathers." He whispered, crossbow pointed to the ground, away from the group. Rick took a closer look at the feathers, and noticed that these looked like real feathers, not the plastic ones Daryl had on his crossbow arrows. Rick followed the possible path the arrow took to the small field bordered by woods to the right side of the highway. There! A flash of color!

"Dale, let me see your binoculars." Rick whispered. Dale handed them to him, and Rick turned back to where the color was. A woman stood just beyond the tree line, wearing a dirty red shirt and tattered cargo shorts. A old fashioned bow was in her hands, and further inspection saw a quiver full of the same arrows on the tire. The woman seemed to sense Rick's eyes on her, and tilted her head. 

She put a finger to her lips, the universal sign for quiet. She shook her right leg slightly, and pointed to the other side of the truck with her bow. Walkers. She tapped her jaw, and pointed at him with her bow this time, asking if there were any infected. He shook his head. She nodded and smiled, before pushing her hand down, telling them to crouch. She turned to the left, sending out an unknown signal, before turning back to him. 

The forest around her suddenly moved, and a small army of people appeared, and they all had close-combat weapons. Rick's eyes widened as he realized what she was about to do, and squished his small group up against the truck. 

"YOO-HOO! OH, WALKERS!" The voice rang out loudly. There was a loud metallic ringing, and Rick realized it was the sound of two pans being hit together. "Come get some! Nice big meal right here!" The same voice yelled. The horrific hiss-growl Rick had become familiar with started, and the first few Walkers appeared, walking towards the group of 20. The group kept making loud noises, drawing the Walkers to them. When the first Walkers got within swinging distance of the humans, all hell broke loose. Thankfully, it was the Walkers dropping like flies, not the humans. 

Soon after, silence fell. Rick didn't want to risk moving yet, so he stayed still. There was a swish of someone walking through grass, then the crunch of a foot on the asphalt. "Hey," a feminine voice called out softly. "It's all good now. They're gone."   
Rick let his friends go and turned to the voice. It was the same woman from the signal exchange, but now she had her bow slung across her back. Her shirt was a little more bloody than before, and she had a streak of black goo across her shins, but other than that, she was fine. "You all okay?" She asked. Rick glanced at everyone.

"Yeah, we're alright. Thank you for that." He walked up to her, and held out his hand. "Rick Grimes." She shook his hand, and he couldn't help but notice how strong and callused her hand seemed. She smiled at him.

"Peyton Winchester. Pleasure to meet you. Who's all in your group then?" She peered back at them. They hesitated, before Carl and Sophia walked forward. 

"I'm Carl, and this is Sophia. Was that you that killed all those Walkers?" He asked with barely hidden awe. Peyton laughed.   
"Well Carl, I had a lot of help from my friends." She pointed back to the field, where her group was chatting with each other, as if they hadn't just killed a large group of the undead. 

"Cool!" Carl and Sophia chimed in unison. Carol then stepped forward. 

"I'm Carol, Sophia here is my daughter. Thank you for saving us." She said. Peyton shook her head. 

"No problem at all." The rest introduced themselves, before a slight pause in the conversation made Peyton slap a hand to her forehead. "My god! Where are my manners! Are you guys hungry? Tired? We have plenty of room for you." She exclaimed. 

"Where're you camped out?" Rick asked. 

"Camp's a little off the road, but you can bring your cars. I can show you where the trail is." Rick nodded, before turning back to his group. 

"What do you guys think?" He asked. Daryl spoke up. 

"Sounds good t'me." The rest nodded. 

"Alright, start up the cars, I'll be back in a few minutes to get us to the trail." Rick said. Everyone started back to their respective vehicles, and Rick followed Peyton off the highway to a slight break between trees. She pushed aside some bushes that weren't rooted down, and Rick saw a long, wide trail leading to a bend. 

"Just drive down here. You'll reach camp soon." Peyton said. Rick nodded, thanked her, and headed back to his group.


	2. Surprises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess I should add that, yeah, Amy lives. This is sometime after the CDC incident, but obviously no highway incident. I don't know if I'll include Maggie, Hershel, or Beth yet.

Daryl didn't know what to expect as he drove around the bend in the trail, but a fence certainly wasn't it. The woman- Peyton somethin'- and her friends led the way down the trail, and when they got to the fence that seemed to get swallowed by the forest, she unchained the gate and let them all in. Daryl was the last one in, and he glanced back to see her close and chain the gate again, before pausing a moment to look down the trail. Probably to make sure they weren't followed. 

Daryl was waiting for her as she caught up. She quirked an eyebrow at his idling. "You waiting for me?" She asked. It wasn't accusatory, just curious. 

"Wouldn't want th' woman who saved our asses to get taken, now would I?" He asked back, the corners of his mouth twitching up slightly. 

Peyton laughed, a smooth, mellow sound. It sounded nice. "Well, it seems I have a gentleman on my hands. Thank you kindly, Sir Dixon." She mock bowed at him. His mouth twitched a little more. They walked on- well, she walked on. Daryl rode his bike slowly- in silence, but it wasn't awkward. Just quiet and peaceful. 

~

If Daryl thought the fence was odd, the camp was a pure miracle. 

It wasn't made of a congregation of tents as he thought it would be, but houses. Five or six houses crowded near each other, with a smattering of small sheds to the right. The twenty friends Peyton had brought along were already spreading out in the camp. The houses seemed to be in the center of a huge field, with trees being the perimeter. Their cars were all parked off to the side. 

People started coming out of the houses. They congregated just in front of the biggest house, which happened to be the one they pulled up in front of. If this was the entire population of the camp, then there were around 40 people. Peyton stepped forward from her spot beside Daryl and his bike, and smiled. 

"Alright everyone, another successful takedown of a group of 20 Walkers. We also brought back some newbies, introductions will be made at dinner. Dismissed." She said. There were a few cheers, but what they were for, Daryl couldn't say. Peyton turned to Rick. "Alright, is anyone hurt or in need of medicine?" She asked. 

"No, we're fine for now." He responded. She nodded. 

"Alright, good." She looked them all over. "I'm sure you're all dirty and grimy, and hungry too. Split yourselves up, who wants to eat first, who wants to shower first?" They all froze. 

"S-Shower?" T-Dog stuttered. She nodded, her brow furrowed. 

"Yeah, you know. Hot water, soap, shampoo. Shower." Their eyes widened further. 

"Hot water?" Carol asked hopefully. Peyton started to look a little annoyed, but not at them. 

"Jeez, what kind of state was your City Camp in?" They all looked confused. Realization dawned on her face. "You... You guys aren't from a City Camp, are you?" 

"Th' hell's a City Camp?" Daryl asked. 

"I can explain what they are at dinner tonight. You guys can go ahead and all take showers now. There are four showers in the front house, three in all the others. Just ask someone for help if you need it." She said. "Feel free to use as much hot water as you need, and once you're finished, you can either relax, or come find me." There was a moment's pause, before a happy yell sounded out. 

"Woohoo! Hot water!" Carl and Sophia charged forward, arms up in the air. They clambered up the stairs, and ran into the house. Carol and Lori followed quickly. T-Dog, Shane, and Rick all went to the house that was to the right, Dale, Amy, and Andrea went to the house on the left, and Daryl walked farther into the camp. 

Beyond the first three houses, there were three more, leaving the house count- so far- at 6. Daryl paused in the center, hearing Peyton walk up behind him.

"Everything alright, Daryl?" She asked, voice concerned. Daryl scoffed lightly. 

"Yeah, 'm fine. Just... This is quite the setup you've got here." He said. 

"Yeah, it took a while. Lost some good people in the process, but we eventually got it." She paused. "Go ahead. Get clean. You smell. I'll see you all at dinner." 

Daryl didn't hesitate to follow her orders.


	3. Chapter 3

Later that day, Peyton pulled Rick aside.

"What can your group do?" She asked. When Rick looked confused, she clarified. "Does anyone in your group have specific abilities? Hunting, cooking, sewing?" 

"Oh, yeah. Daryl's a good hunter, Shane and I are both police officers, Carol can sew. Glenn's a good mechanic. Anything else, I'm not sure about." She nodded. 

"Sounds good. We'll be having burgers tonight." Then she walked away, leaving Rick to sputter in place. 

~

"Alright everyone, gather 'round! We got newbies!" Peyton called out. It was dinner time, and they had set up a fire pit outside the front house, which seemed to be the main one. The burgers- actual hamburgers- had been delicious, and they had all asked for seconds, which they received. 

Peyton stood on the steps of the house, with a wide smile on her face. She nodded at Rick, who grinned back. "We found them just before the Walker attack today. If you would be so kind as to introduce yourselves." 

"I'm Rick Grimes. That's my wife Lori, and my son Carl." Rick started off. 

"Shane Walsh." Shane continued. 

“Andrea, and this is my sister Amy.” 

“Dale Horvath.” 

“Carol Peletier, and this is my daughter Sophia.” Sophia smiled hesitantly from next to her mother. 

“T-Dog.”

“Glenn Rhee.”

“Daryl Dixon.” As the last introduction finished, Peyton smiled and nodded her thanks.

“Now then. As tradition goes, whenever we get newbies, we have music night-” Cheers rose up from the crowd. “-But! These guys aren’t from a City Camp, and if they’re too tired to join us, then they are free to go to bed.” Silence settled as the campers realized what her words meant. 

“What is a City Camp?” Carl piped up. Peyton blushed as she realized she still hadn’t explained what they were. 

“Well, this here is the Philadelphia Camp. It may be a bit far from the original city, but it’s as close as we could get while still having enough room. All along the eastern side of the US, there have been camps organized and fortified in major cities. There’s one just outside the New York City limits, they’ve barricaded the White House in D.C, Chicago, Boston, Baltimore, Raleigh, and Atlanta. We fly between them every few months to trade supplies. It’s as close to civilization as we can get nowadays.” A few faces fell and Peyton’s mention of Atlanta, including Rick. “What?”

“I’m pretty sure the Atlanta one isn’t there anymore. I went through Atlanta before I met up with the rest. It was all Walkers. If it wasn’t for Glenn, I wouldn’t have made it.” Rick said sadly, looking up at Peyton. Her eyes widened momentarily, and Rick got a glimpse of the pure sadness in this woman’s face, before she spoke again, her voice wavering slightly. 

“I... I need to go speak with someone. You can all start music night without me, I’ll be back in a moment.” she said softly before turning and walking back into the main house. There was a slight pause, before the campers started chattering about what songs to play.

~ 

Ten minutes later, Peyton came back out with a guitar and a slightly forced smile. “Alright, any song requests from the newbies?” she asked, turning towards them. 

“How about Hey Jude?” Carl asked. Rick turned to him with a raised eyebrow. 

“Carl, I didn’t know you knew the Beatles.” Carl scoffed. 

“I’m not that musically challenged, Dad, of course I know the Beatles.”

“Good choice, Carl. Let’s begin.” Peyton said with a less forced smile. 

As the rest of the group joined in to the signing, Rick paused and glanced around. He wasn’t quite sure why, but he felt someone’s eyes on him. He looked closer, and saw- Daryl? Daryl seemed to be studying Rick, not like the usual scowl he had on his rough and dirty face. Rick furrowed his eyebrows, and tilted his head; What's wrong?

Daryl simply shook his head, looked away, and went back to singing. When he saw that Rick finally looked away, Daryl blushed lightly.


End file.
